Disclaimer:
I do not own the characters of Supernatural,
only my own created characters and situations.
This story is written for entertainment purposes only.

Author's Note:
Please let me know if you spot any errors in the story,
English isn't my first language and this is the first time I publish something.
I wil try to update as often as possible. Reviews are welcome!

FRIENDLY STRANGERS

There she sat. She had lost everything. Her family, her future. Everything was gone. It was over her, casting its shadow on her life. She'd spend her last money on a sandwich and a cup of coffee at the supermarket on campus. Next to her stood her backpack with some of her last possessions. She'd already experienced a lot, but these last months were the final straw.

Last year September she'd made the hardest decision of her life. What was her plan for the future? She decided to take the leap and finally get an undergraduate degree. Soon she discovered that life at university wasn't that bad, but as time passed the anxiety kicked in and the panic attacks got out of hand.

Her mother always wanted her to go to university so she wouldn't end up like she did; no money, no career, becoming a mom on a young age without knowing who the man was who knocked her up. She also had this dream for Paul, Frankie's older brother. Unfortunately, he never got the chance.

Six years ago [flashback]

She had had the best summer vacation ever and didn't want to leave to get back to her life in the city. There is such sadness in leaving a place of strong love, a place where fond memories grew as fast as the clover in the grass.

PAUL
Ready, sis?

She walked back to the car where her mom was trying to fit in the last baggage of the trip together.

FRANKIE
No! You?

A sigh escaped from her lips. Without caring what people thought of her, she waved goodbye to the cabin. She walked past Paul and punches him in the shoulder with a small grin on her face. They were always teasing each other. In a few hours she would be back in a sea of skyscrapers and people, where she wouldn't find a tree in a perimeter of at least five miles near her home.

At the same time as her mom she stepped into the old Mercedes. The engine started and the blond woman looked back at her son and daughter with a big smile on her face.

Frankie hasn't been this happy in like forever. Finally she saw her mother smiling again after a long time of struggling. This summer did her good. Life has been good to them the last couple of months. Her mom had found a job that provided the three with all they needed. They even got the chance to go on this family trip together, their first vacation. It wasn't special, no luxury was included. Just a simple cabin in the woods.

After driving a couple of miles she sat down more relaxed and laid her head on the shoulder of her older sibling, so she could gaze outside the claustrophobic comfort of the car. As the engine sung to the lone country roads, Frankie relished the roaring winds that twirled in her long brown hair and whistled in her ears, causing her to fall asleep.

[end flashback]

That is the last thing she remembered. The last time she saw her mom and brother alive. Frankie often had nightmares about that day. It was still unknown what caused the horrible accident. Sometimes she would dream about a deer or other big animal jumping in front of the car, other times she would dream about a girl of about sixteen years old, wearing a white dress with blood stains, standing in the middle of the road. Every time it is like she tries to tell something important, but before the words become clear, Frankie would wake up, drowning in sweat.

She was the only one that survived the horror. Not unharmed, but still able to breathe in the fresh air, feeling the rain on her skin and hearing the thunder after the lightning.

Frankie stands up and lifts her backpack from the ground. While the warm wind strokes her cheek, she decides it's time to say goodbye to the campus where she'd spend the last nine months. Frankie didn't feel welcome here anymore. There was no one to say goodbye to, no one to bring her there where she could start over. She started walking. Not looking back. There was nothing that kept her here.

Dean was standing in the war room of the bunker, or the Batcave as he liked to call it. It was the safest place on earth, warded against any evil ever created.

DEAN
Sam! Hurry up! With your pace the bar will already be closed, man!

Sam appears in the war room. He walks up to Dean with a bunch of old books in his hands, ready to go.

SAM
Geez, calm down! I had to get something from my room.

DEAN
Pfff, you won't get bored tonight I see.

SAM
No. Need to do some research.

DEAN
Hmm. Let's go, bitch!

SAM
Jerk!

The last couple of weeks have been easy. Just some small cases in the neighborhood. No funny business. No injuries. It was strange for the two brothers to have some time on their hands.

Five minutes driving from the bunker, they found a bar aside the road. From time to time they enjoyed the loud music, alcohol and bar food like peanuts and chips. Pulling up on the backside of the bar they were welcomed by the smell of cigarettes and cheap booze. They step out of the Impala and walk to the entrance of the bar.

Behind a wooden counter stands an older man, approximately sixty years old, with a long white beard, just like Santa. Sam walks to a table in the left corner of the old roadhouse, while Dean takes a sprint to order a drink for him and his brother.

DEAN
Hi! Bourbon and a beer, please.

Smiling, without saying anything the old man starts pouring the drinks. Dean looks around. There were some bikers at the pool table. But no woman could be found. Disappointed he turns back to the bartender.

DEAN
Make it a double.

A few seconds later the man hands over the drinks and turns back to talk to one of the bikers that appeared on the other side of the bar. Dean walks back to Sam, almost tripping over a loose floorboard.

DEAN
Fuck me!

SAM
Excuse me?

With a sigh Dean sits down on the chair facing his younger brother. It wasn't like he had planned it to go. Normally he would have been able to choose between women walking around in places like this, but not tonight, not in this dump.

The bare branches spiked into the sky. No sign of life to be found anywhere. It was so dark Frankie was barely able to see where she was going. There were only small sounds of rustling bushes and the howl of the wind. She didn't know what laid in the dark forest, all she knew was that it wasn't going to be a peaceful journey. Frankie had been on her way for more than ten hours now, and her legs started to give up. She wasn't used to walking these distances. Fatigue began to increase and she couldn't hold back the tears anymore. Where would she wind up? She was in de middle of nowhere.

Ten minutes later Frankie almost drops to her knees. She couldn't go on anymore. Fighting the emotions she spots a light in the distance. With her last energy she walks towards the roadhouse.

Entering the bar she walks straight to the man serving drinks.

FRANKIE
Excuse me, sir. May I use the bathroom?

The old man looks at Frankie and becomes aware of her red eyes. Behind the masked smile she wears on her face, there is sadness.

BARTENDER
Of course, sweetheart. If you're ready, can I offer you something to drink? On the house.

It takes a second or two to sink in. She was surprised by hearing the friendly words. It was nice to experience that there are still kind people on this earth.

FRANKIE
Thank you!

BARTENDER
No need to thank me, sweetheart. You'll find the bathroom at the end of the small hallway on your right. Drop by when you are ready.

Turning to her right, she walks towards the bathroom. It's not big, but it contains everything she needs right now. She closes the door behind her, starts opening her backpack and grabs a pair of jeans, a black tank top, a denim jacket and a baseball cap. At the sink, she starts to wash her face. The cold water gives her a fresh feeling. She really needed that.

After a few minutes she packs up the clothes she had worn today and stuffs it in the backpack. She puts her long brown hair under the black baseball cap, checks herself one last time in the mirror and unlocks the door.

BARTENDER
Back that soon? What can I offer you to drink?

FRANKIE
A nice cold beer, please.

Sam looks up from his book, catching a glimpse of his empty bottle of beer.

SAM
Dean, do you want another drink?

The older Winchester is obviously bored and doesn't even hear what his younger sibling asks. With a soft kick Sam managed to get the attention of his brother.

DEAN
What!?

SAM
I asked you if you would like another drink.

DEAN
Hmm. Yeah, ok. I don't think I will be hanging around here for long, Sammy. This place is awful.

Sam grins. Knowing his brother is really bored when he wants to go home early. He gets up and walks towards the bar to ask for another round. The person talking to the bartender turns around without noticing Sam and slams into this chest. The impact causes the guy to fall backwards. Without thinking Sam grabs his arm pulling him back on his feet, only then to discover that it wasn't a man he saved from crashing into a barstool.

FRANKIE
Oh, god! I'm really sorry. I wasn't paying attention.

SAM
No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have stood so close behind you. Are you ok?

FRANKIE
Yeah, yeah! I'm still standing, thanks to you. My mind was wandering a bit.

SAM
Well, you're not the only one with that problem tonight.

Sam points to Dean, who's still sitting at the table, not noticing anything that is happening.

SAM
My name is Sam by the way. Are you here alone?

FRANKIE
Yeah.

SAM
Want to join us at our table? We can use some company.

Frankie didn't really know what to do. She was the type of person who was more comfortable on her own, always afraid to open and shine her beauty to the world. There was something about the shadows that soothed the twenty-five year old.

FRANKIE
Yeah. I can use a friendly face. My name is Frankie, nice to meet you.

Alongside Sam she walks with the cold drink in her hand to the table. He was tall, certainly not scary looking and a couple of years older than her. Sam's long brown locks were like the manes of a lion. It suited him.

SAM
Dean! We have a guest.

The man at the table looks up. His eyes were the glimmering color of emerald, sparkling in the light of the morning sun like a fresh sheen of morning dew. And lips she had only read about in old romantic English literature. He has an absent look, but the moment he realizes what is happening his posture changed.

SAM
This is Frankie.

The left side of Dean's faint pink lip tugged upwards, creating a smirk on his god like face; casting a spell to eyes that dare look his way.

DEAN
Hi! I'm Dean, Sam's big brother. Do I know you from somewhere?

Here we go again, Sam thought. Frankie points at the old leather books on the table.

FRANKIE
Are you students?

DEAN
Nope!

FRANKIE
Oh! I don't think I know you then. Sorry.

Sam invites Frankie to sit down beside him. His smile seems so genuinely sweet with just the right touch of shyness. An unexpected warmth rushes through Frankie.

DEAN
So, where are you from? Do you live nearby?

FRANKIE
Not really. Until this morning I lived on campus.

SAM
Oh, nice! In what did you graduate?

FRANKIE
I didn't.

Frankie's attitude changes. It was hard to talk about this. Without giving Sam and Dean the chance to ask further, she changes the subject.

FRANKIE
So what are you two doing with all these books in a place like this?

DEAN
I don't do anything with these dusty old things. Sam is the nerd around here.

SAM
Thanks for the short introduction, Dean! I just like to read, you know. Getting to know things.

The books on the table all have interesting subjects. Frankie sets her eyes on a book about demons. She was always interested in the supernatural. Frankie was the kind of girl that believed there was something beyond all this, unlike others.

FRANKIE
Do you mind?

SAM
No, of course not. Be my guest.

Frankie grabs the book and starts scrolling. There were a lot of pictures and old Latin notes. She was honestly interested. Time flew by. They talked about random stuff and about the other books on the table, nothing personal. Before Frankie knew it was already midnight. She really had to leave.

FRANKIE
I'm really sorry, but I need to go now. I have a long journey ahead. It was nice to talk to you guys.

SAM
Yeah, it was really nice to talk to you, too.

DEAN
Nice meeting you, Frankie.

Frankie reached for her backpack next to the chair and gets up. She pushes the chair closer to the table and waves one last time to the old man behind the bar. He waves back as she leaves.

Frankie succeeded to walk a couple of miles after leaving the bar. She could feel the darkness drawing closer and pressing down, suffocating her slowly. The densely packed trees loomed high above, but remained still despite the icy breeze that continued to flow around. The silvery moonlight was slowed to a trickle by the full branches. On the left she sets eyes on a house. Maybe she could sneak into a barn to rest until the morning. She was way too tired to walk on. She crossed the road and walks into the grove. After like hundred meters she stops by an aged scarecrow. The thing freaks her out and she starts to walk faster in the direction of the old house. She can see lights burning. Behind her she could hear something move, making her stop immediately.

FRANKIE
Who's there?

She starts walking again and seconds later there is something rustling in the trees. She can't see anything and increases her speed a bit more. Before she can abandon the grove she got pulled back in. She couldn't breathe, it felt as if someone was choking her. Her heart was racing and all she wanted to do was curl up into a ball and wait for someone to save her. But no one would, no one was there. A choked cry for help forced itself up her throat, and she felt a drop run down her cheek. It seemed as if this was the end of the road for her.